The Mother of God
Information about the Catholic Teaching on the Blessed Virgin Mary
Information from the Catechism of the Catholic Church about Mary
Readings for Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God[1][2]
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
Readings and Commentary:[3]
Reading 1: Numbers 6:22-27
The LORD said to Moses:
“Speak to Aaron and his sons and tell them:
This is how you shall bless the Israelites.
Say to them:
The LORD bless you and keep you!
The LORD let his face shine upon
you, and be gracious to you!
The LORD look upon you kindly and
give you peace!
So shall they invoke my name upon the Israelites,
and I will bless them.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Nm 6:22-27
Especially in Protestant circles this passage is known as Aaron’s Blessing and is often used as the final blessing given at their services. It is interesting for us that it is used on the Solemnity of Mary – the obvious inference is that Mary, the Mother of God is a blessing to all of us.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Responsorial Psalm:[4] Psalm 67:2-3, 5, 6, 8
R. (2a) May God bless us in his mercy.
May God have pity on us and bless us;
may he let his face shine upon us.
So may your way be known upon earth;
among all nations, your salvation.
R. May God bless us in his mercy.
May the nations be glad and exult
because you rule the peoples in equity;
the nations on the earth you guide.
R. May God bless us in his mercy.
May the peoples praise you, O God;
may all the peoples praise you!
May God bless us,
and may all the ends of the earth fear him!
R. May God bless us in his mercy.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Ps 67:2-3, 5, 6, 8
Psalm 67 gives us another blessing and has elements of the ancient blessing of Aaron we heard in the first reading. This blessing has more of a plaintive tone, beseeching, almost pleading that the Lord bless us.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reading II: Galatians 4:4-7
When the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son,
born of a woman, born under the law,
to ransom those under the law,
so that we might receive adoption as sons.
As proof that you are sons,
God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts,
crying out, “Abba, Father!”
So you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son then also an heir, through God.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Gal 4:4-7
“God sent his Son, born of a woman” this passage provides us with the important fact that Mary gave birth to Jesus. He did not mystically appear to us. Jesus is (was) true man, meaning he went through the biological birth process. That also means that Mary, the Mother of God when through all of the difficult physical process of giving birth.
St. Paul goes on to remind us that through this action we are all adopted by God and are entitled to call God our Father “Abba” (translated into American usage as “daddy”).
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gospel: Luke 2:16-21
So they (shepherds) went in haste
and found Mary and Joseph,
and the infant lying in the manger.
When they saw this,
they made known the message
that had been told them about this child.
All who heard it were amazed
by what had been told them by the shepherds.
And Mary kept all these things,
reflecting on them in her heart.
Then the shepherds returned,
glorifying and praising God
for all they had heard and seen,
just as it had been told to them.
When eight days were completed for his circumcision,
he was named Jesus, the name given him by the angel
before he was conceived in the womb.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Lk 2:16-21
The message, given to the shepherds by choirs of angels that they, in turn, brought to Mary that she kept and reflected in her heart about was; “For today in the city of David a savior has been born for you who is Messiah and Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger." (Luke 2 11-12)
This encounter with the shepherds further reinforces Mary’s faith, the acceptance of her child’s role explained to her by the Archangel Gabriel when this wonderful and tragic journey began.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reflection:
“And Mary kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart.”
Still within the manger we come at last to the still Virgin Mary. On the very night she gave birth to this remarkable Son in the most surprising of places, they are visited by shepherds who come rejoicing at the birth of her child. Yes, the signs had been shown to her. She had been visited by Gabriel the Archangel who had first announced the conception of this infant by the Holy Spirit. Elizabeth, Mary’s much older cousin, had confirmed the divine nature of the child growing in her womb (as did her own unborn child, St. John the Baptist). Joseph too had heard in a dream that this virginal conception had taken place. But it must have felt like a dream to them. Indeed, Mary was pregnant and Joseph did as he was told, accepting her into his home. But then, for the whole term of her pregnancy and the trip from Nazareth to Bethlehem no word of divine intervention is recorded.
The holy couple must have wondered if they had imagined God’s messages. Even if they expected to be blessed by a remarkable birth, these expectations must have been dashed when they found that no reasonable accommodations were available to them in Bethlehem. How could one so great be born in a situation so humble? Now, when their circumstances seemed to contradict the momentous event, shepherds come. They too have been visited! It had not been a dream after all. What kind of life would this infant lead, what great things had Gabriel meant when he said; “He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end."?(Luke 1:32-33)
When the shepherds first arrived she and Joseph must have been concerned. They were in a strange town and stranger surroundings and here come shepherds. They had probably brought their flocks with them since they would not just leave them unattended. But the came, at night (Luke 2:8), and these humble shepherds were worshiping her son in this lowly place. It must have been overwhelming. And Sacred Scripture tells us with such economy; “And Mary kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart.”
She “kept” them for us. She offers them to us. All this miraculous story is handed to us so that we might share her joy at the birth of her Son. Her motherhood is fulfilled in this instance, not just the motherhood of an infant son, but her motherhood for us all. For it was through this gift of life the brought into the world that all of us found life as well.
Today we celebrate the wondrous motherhood that sprang from the Nativity of the Lord and we rejoice with the shepherds that the Queen of Angles should boldly accept the mantel that made her Mother of the Church.
Pax
Information about the Catholic Teaching on the Blessed Virgin Mary
Information from the Catechism of the Catholic Church about Mary
Readings for Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God[1][2]
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
Readings and Commentary:[3]
Reading 1: Numbers 6:22-27
The LORD said to Moses:
“Speak to Aaron and his sons and tell them:
This is how you shall bless the Israelites.
Say to them:
The LORD bless you and keep you!
The LORD let his face shine upon
you, and be gracious to you!
The LORD look upon you kindly and
give you peace!
So shall they invoke my name upon the Israelites,
and I will bless them.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Nm 6:22-27
Especially in Protestant circles this passage is known as Aaron’s Blessing and is often used as the final blessing given at their services. It is interesting for us that it is used on the Solemnity of Mary – the obvious inference is that Mary, the Mother of God is a blessing to all of us.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Responsorial Psalm:[4] Psalm 67:2-3, 5, 6, 8
R. (2a) May God bless us in his mercy.
May God have pity on us and bless us;
may he let his face shine upon us.
So may your way be known upon earth;
among all nations, your salvation.
R. May God bless us in his mercy.
May the nations be glad and exult
because you rule the peoples in equity;
the nations on the earth you guide.
R. May God bless us in his mercy.
May the peoples praise you, O God;
may all the peoples praise you!
May God bless us,
and may all the ends of the earth fear him!
R. May God bless us in his mercy.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Ps 67:2-3, 5, 6, 8
Psalm 67 gives us another blessing and has elements of the ancient blessing of Aaron we heard in the first reading. This blessing has more of a plaintive tone, beseeching, almost pleading that the Lord bless us.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reading II: Galatians 4:4-7
When the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son,
born of a woman, born under the law,
to ransom those under the law,
so that we might receive adoption as sons.
As proof that you are sons,
God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts,
crying out, “Abba, Father!”
So you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son then also an heir, through God.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Gal 4:4-7
“God sent his Son, born of a woman” this passage provides us with the important fact that Mary gave birth to Jesus. He did not mystically appear to us. Jesus is (was) true man, meaning he went through the biological birth process. That also means that Mary, the Mother of God when through all of the difficult physical process of giving birth.
St. Paul goes on to remind us that through this action we are all adopted by God and are entitled to call God our Father “Abba” (translated into American usage as “daddy”).
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gospel: Luke 2:16-21
So they (shepherds) went in haste
and found Mary and Joseph,
and the infant lying in the manger.
When they saw this,
they made known the message
that had been told them about this child.
All who heard it were amazed
by what had been told them by the shepherds.
And Mary kept all these things,
reflecting on them in her heart.
Then the shepherds returned,
glorifying and praising God
for all they had heard and seen,
just as it had been told to them.
When eight days were completed for his circumcision,
he was named Jesus, the name given him by the angel
before he was conceived in the womb.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Lk 2:16-21
The message, given to the shepherds by choirs of angels that they, in turn, brought to Mary that she kept and reflected in her heart about was; “For today in the city of David a savior has been born for you who is Messiah and Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger." (Luke 2 11-12)
This encounter with the shepherds further reinforces Mary’s faith, the acceptance of her child’s role explained to her by the Archangel Gabriel when this wonderful and tragic journey began.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reflection:
“And Mary kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart.”
Still within the manger we come at last to the still Virgin Mary. On the very night she gave birth to this remarkable Son in the most surprising of places, they are visited by shepherds who come rejoicing at the birth of her child. Yes, the signs had been shown to her. She had been visited by Gabriel the Archangel who had first announced the conception of this infant by the Holy Spirit. Elizabeth, Mary’s much older cousin, had confirmed the divine nature of the child growing in her womb (as did her own unborn child, St. John the Baptist). Joseph too had heard in a dream that this virginal conception had taken place. But it must have felt like a dream to them. Indeed, Mary was pregnant and Joseph did as he was told, accepting her into his home. But then, for the whole term of her pregnancy and the trip from Nazareth to Bethlehem no word of divine intervention is recorded.
The holy couple must have wondered if they had imagined God’s messages. Even if they expected to be blessed by a remarkable birth, these expectations must have been dashed when they found that no reasonable accommodations were available to them in Bethlehem. How could one so great be born in a situation so humble? Now, when their circumstances seemed to contradict the momentous event, shepherds come. They too have been visited! It had not been a dream after all. What kind of life would this infant lead, what great things had Gabriel meant when he said; “He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end."?(Luke 1:32-33)
When the shepherds first arrived she and Joseph must have been concerned. They were in a strange town and stranger surroundings and here come shepherds. They had probably brought their flocks with them since they would not just leave them unattended. But the came, at night (Luke 2:8), and these humble shepherds were worshiping her son in this lowly place. It must have been overwhelming. And Sacred Scripture tells us with such economy; “And Mary kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart.”
She “kept” them for us. She offers them to us. All this miraculous story is handed to us so that we might share her joy at the birth of her Son. Her motherhood is fulfilled in this instance, not just the motherhood of an infant son, but her motherhood for us all. For it was through this gift of life the brought into the world that all of us found life as well.
Today we celebrate the wondrous motherhood that sprang from the Nativity of the Lord and we rejoice with the shepherds that the Queen of Angles should boldly accept the mantel that made her Mother of the Church.
Pax
[1] ALTRE
[2] The picture used today is “Adoration of the Shepherds” by Carlo Maratti, 1690s
[3] Text of Readings is taken from the New American Bible, Copyright © Libreria Editrice Vaticana
[4] Excerpts from the English translation of The Roman Missal © 1973, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved
1 comment:
Thanks for your daily blog posts! They are very helpful to me, and I appreciate the art, links, etc. Thanks again and God Bless. Happy New Year.
Post a Comment